Shadows and Ash--Ghost in the Machine
by Kineil D. Wicks
Summary: There was a plan. A good plan: watch a scary movie while Delia was enjoying her "girl's night out." But when a mystery Pokémon appears, the first thing to spring to Ash's mind was: Mom is going to kill me when she sees the TV.
1. Movie Night

**Hello, Pokémon-people, and happy Ash Wednesday! Which is entirely unrelated to Ash Ketchum, but I figured it was as good a time as any to publish this and thus begin my journey into the Pokémon branch of fanfiction publication….**

 **This was written as some background/a prequel for a larger piece I'm working on, which I started because I looked up fanfics with Ash and Darkrai and wished that there were more stories featuring the duo that didn't pick up right after the movie. So, depending upon how well this one does, I may share the larger piece starting in October (I have other fanfics to finish first -_-).**

 **So, without further ado, please enjoy this story featuring a young Ash, a grumpy Darkrai, invading Bellsprout, TV Tropes terms, nineties technology, and assorted references to** ** _Calvin and Hobbes, Digimon,_** ** _The Iron Giant,_** **and Bill Cosby's "Chicken Heart" story.**

 **Pokémon © 1996 Game Freak; Nintendo**

 **Calvin and Hobbes © 1985 Bill Watterson (that one ill-fated attempt at leaving Calvin by himself)**

 **Digimon © 1999 Bandai (the mom having a health-food thing)**

 **The Iron Giant © 1999 Brad Bird (the TV scene)**

 **Bambi** **© 1942 Disney (only it features a Deerling)**

 **Skulduggery Pleasant** **© 2007 Derek Landy (Darkrai uses a quote from the first book)**

 **Chicken Heart © 1966 Bill Cosby (from the album "Wonderfulness"—and Word recognizes that….)**

It was that time of the month again. No, not _that_ time of the month.

Once a month, after the bills were paid and a little extra was saved up, Delia Ketchum would go out with a few of her friends to a little restaurant in Pallet Town (which in and of itself was an accomplishment, as _everything_ in Pallet Town was small). She missed going out on the town in the bigger cities, but she had a small obligation now.

"Brush your teeth before you go to bed, make sure the front and back doors are locked, _no_ junk food," she stressed, glancing at her son Ash as she did up her hair. "And absolutely _no_ scary movies—the last time you watched one you booby-trapped the whole house and spread Jell-O on the floors."

Her seven-year-old son nodded—when she looked back on these early years, she would be horrified that she had ever left him alone by himself (and at times seriously questioned letting him go off on a journey with a disobedient Pikachu), but it was a simpler time: the War had recently ended, and everyone was settling back into civilian life and getting used to not diving for cover at a loud sneeze.

Later, she wouldn't dare leave him alone at home at night, and often stayed up with some of her Pokémon, fretting over the news of robbers and marauders roaming the regions still recovering, Kanto included. She got her sleep during the day when he was at school, after locking the house up—and every single day, she would curse the fact that he left his window not only unlocked, but _open_. Anything could get in like _that!_

There was a knocking at the door—her friends were here. "Now you're _sure_ you'll be all right?" Delia asked, crouching down to look her son in the eye.

"No problem, Mom," Ash said, pushing up the League cap he had recently won so he could see. "I'll be fine. Honest."

"Good boy," she said, taking off his cap so she could kiss him on the forehead. "Lock up after I leave."

"Okay, okay…."

"Good. Love you."

"Love you too!"

She exited the house, said hello to her friends, and lingered on the doorstep until she heard the lock click. Good boy.

She'd feel better if one of her Pokémon were there to keep an eye on him, but they were at Oak's for their annual check-up—she only had two, and Faraday the Farfetch'd would cry if her old grizzled Raticate weren't there with him.

But he'd be fine for a few hours.

She'd just have to be on the lookout for booby-traps when she got home.

* * *

Ash dutifully locked the front door when his mom left—if he didn't do it right away, she'd stick her head back in and ask "Well, what are you waiting for?"

He went to the living room, watched her leave with her friends after one last glance back at the house, and then immediately went to the back door and opened it.

Something big and dark loomed just outside.

"Didja get it?" Ash asked, grinning brightly.

The pitch-black monster brought its claws forward, free hand tapping the VHS tape it was holding.

 ** _"I did,"_** Darkrai said, floating in. **_"Are there proper refreshments this time?"_**

"Yeah," Ash said, already throwing a bag of popping-Cornn into the microwave. "Mom's gotten off her health kick."

Darkrai, meanwhile, had made a Combeeline to the bread drawer, using a single claw to slide the drawer open. **_"Ah, bless,"_** he opined, eyeing the Twinkies within. **_"I was getting sick of rice cakes."_**

"At least _you_ didn't have to _eat_ them," Ash said, pulling the canned whipped cream and a couple of sodas out of the fridge and holding them up. "Are we ready?"

Darkrai transferred the Twinkies to the crook of his elbow and pulled the popped-Cornn out of the microwave. **_"Contact._** "

* * *

Within short order, they were camped out in front of the TV, watching the previews and steadily munching away on popped-Cornn.

"So what's the movie?" Ash asked, not having the chance to look at it before Darkrai popped it into the VCR. The sleeve was no help—it simply advertised the local movie rental place.

 ** _"'Zombie Psychic Brains,'"_ ** Darkrai quoted. **_"I hear it's an art film."_**

"Is it scary?"

 ** _"You're going to have some very entertaining nightmares tonight."_**

"If I get to sleep—Mom said I wasn't allowed to booby-trap the house anymore."

 ** _"To be fair, your earlier attempts weren't all that good—Jell-O on the kitchen floor?"_**

"Hey—I heard on the radio that that's a _very_ good monster deterrent."

 ** _"And what if they're like me and just float over?"_**

Ash was quiet for a few beats. "I…hadn't thought of that…."

Darkrai chortled to himself. **_"And in three years they're going to give you a Pokémon and send you out into the wild. And they call these 'Pokémon Professors' smart."_**

Ash threw a few kernels at him.

* * *

About an hour later, they were firmly entrenched in the movie. It was _finally_ getting good—the monster was about to show up.

Ash filled a Twinkie with whipped-cream as he watched the black-and-white picture—which was Darkrai's choice entirely. Darkrai _loved_ old radio shows and old horror pictures—he said they had more fright potential than the "newer tripe."

After watching a newer hack-and-slash zombie flick with some of the other kids at school (they had pulled a bait-and-switch and snuck into the horror film after the Deerling-centric _Bambi_ —which was the movie they had bought the tickets for—started playing), Ash had to admit he had a point—the older shows had more flair, and a slower buildup. It was the waiting that was the most horrifying part, Ash realized.

That, and the knowledge that the monster was intelligent, _and simply and quietly considering you before attacking._

 _"And here is the central nervous system of an Alakazam,"_ movie-dude said, in the typical stilted voice of the B-horrors. A brain and a web of nerves was shown, suspended in liquid—fake, obviously, but it'd make the coming fake-out all the better. " _We postulate that by implanting some cells into human brains, we could gain the ability to read minds."_

Ash filled up another Twinkie with a loud _phhssst_ and then handed it to Darkrai; he then used his free hand to stuff the rest of his own Twinkie in his mouth as movie-dude went on with the description and then tried to move into _gushy_ stuff—which knocked the brain-jar to the floor. _"Drat,"_ movie-dude said. _"A perfectly good brain wasted. Well, we'll let the janitor handle it—what do you say to a nightcap, say, my place?"_

 _"Bleech,"_ Ash noised.

 ** _"I told you it was a horror movie,"_** Darkrai said.

Movie-dude patted his pockets. _"I seem to have left my keys in there—I'll be just a moment."_ He tried the light upon entering—it didn't work. _"Hmm…."_

"You're gonna get it," Ash sang as Darkrai cackled.

But just as the monsterized zombie brain attacked, the tape went screwy.

" _Hey,"_ Ash moaned as Darkrai unplugged the VCR to stop its manic whirring. He pulled out the tape to find that it had been unspooled.

"Well…maybe there's something else on," Ash said, grabbing the remote and flipping through channels as Darkrai wound the tape back into the cassette.

Five minutes later, Ash had to concede that every last channel was static.

"Stupid antenna," he muttered, glaring at the ceiling.

In short order, he and Darkrai were outside, Ash armed with a flashlight, since he couldn't see in the dark. He shone the light up to the corner of the house.

 ** _"Well, that's still there,"_** Darkrai observed.

"Huh," Ash noised. "I thought the town Dodrio sat on it—it looks fine."

And then the kitchen lights turned on.

Ash snapped the flashlight down, wide-eyed.

Nothing more happened.

 ** _"Distraction and then gaslighting,"_** Darkrai said after a moment. **_"I approve."_**


	2. Professor Oak's Lab

**Chapter 2 (out of 3, I believe) of this, our little Ash and Darkrai short story, in which the little rotter is revealed and we learn about Pokémon age in this interpretation—a silver medal on a collar means the Pokémon is too old to battle.**

 **Thanks for the review, Cutesaralisa! Yes, Darkrai's reactions will be something to see….**

 **And thank you everyone who's invested in this story by means of reading, faving, and following—I hope this chapter pleases as well as the first. :)**

 **So without further ado, presenting Chapter 2 with its references to Dragonsrule18's fanfic "When One Door Closes, Two More Open" (a really great read), the movie** ** _Gremlins_** **, and the infamous Porygon episode of** ** _Pokémon._ And we finally get to see what happened to the TV as referenced in the summary. :)**

 **Pokémon © 1996 Game Freak; Nintendo**

 ** _Gremlins_** **© 1984 Joe Dante**

 ** _Chicken Little_** **© 2005 Mark Dindal ("Prepare to hurt!")**

Darkrai entered the house first, followed by Ash, still armed with the flashlight.

 ** _"I still don't see why I had to go in first,"_** Darkrai groused.

"Because you're the big bad scary Legendary," Ash told him. "Now check the house, before the ghost has a chance to get an axe or something."

Darkrai scoffed, but obliged, drifting into the kitchen as Ash clung to his tattered-cloak tail, shining his flashlight everywhere in an attempt to detect an ambush.

Darkrai, meanwhile, had checked the cabinets and the refrigerator, and with the exception of a lonely Ho-ho (who was quickly introduced to the Twinkie in Darkrai's stomach), nothing seemed out of place. He said as much, and prepared to drift into the rest of the house.

"Wait, what about the microwave?" Ash asked.

 ** _"Are you kidding me? Nothing dangerous or axe-wielding fits in a microwave,"_** Darkrai scolded, reaching for the device with the intention of demonstrating.

Before his claws could touch it, however, the whole thing exploded in a shower of sparks, shorting the lights as they yelped and dodged back.

And then a new source of light joined Ash's flashlight, cackling madly as it _pinged_ around and then out of the room.

 _"What was that?"_ Ash wailed, clinging to Darkrai's back.

Darkrai had a vague idea. **_" That—is dead meat,"_** he declared, heading straight for the living room and the television.

The television was sparking madly—Darkrai didn't give it a chance to jump out. Shadow Ball straight to the screen.

"Mom's going to kill me," Ash moaned upon seeing the smoking husk.

And then the little monster Darkrai expected popped out, obviously intent on making a break for it before Darkrai unleashed an Ominous Wind.

"What is _that?"_ Ash squawked.

 _That_ —looked like an orange lightbulb with a point on its head, surrounded by blue electricity.

 ** _"That? That's nothing of importance."_**

 _"Oh, like you're a real looker yourself!"_ the lightbulb snapped—and then vanished out the window with a yelp when it saw Darkrai readying another attack.

"What was that?" Ash asked again after a moment.

 ** _"That was a Rotom,"_** Darkrai decided to explain. " ** _They're an Electric-Ghost Pokémon that like to possess appliances and cause trouble."_** He leaned out of the window. **_"The good news is: it's long-gone now."_**

"Don't you think we should track it down so it doesn't cause any more trouble?"

 ** _"In a word: no."_**

"But we _have_ to! What if it fries Professor Oak's lab?"

 ** _"What's this 'we' business? Last I checked, you were about worthless back there!"_**

 _"Hey, some of us are trying to sleep here!"_

Darkrai looked down to see that a troupe of irritated Bellsprout had planted themselves in Delia's small garden.

And then the back door slammed.

 ** _"Oh, great—where are you going?"_** Darkrai called.

" _I'm_ going to go stop that thing," Ash declared, stomping away towards the Professor's lab.

Darkrai groaned and rubbed his face. _Idiot kid…._

" ** _I suppose if he dies, I don't have to deal with him anymore,"_** Darkrai mused.

He detected concentrated ire aimed at him, originating from the garden beneath the window—of course; most Pokémon took offense to letting a young human go and get himself killed. **_"Fine, fine! I'm going, see?"_**

 _"Try not to make too much noise when you get back,"_ one of the Bellsprout muttered.

 ** _"May a troupe of hungry Fearow eat you,"_** Darkrai groused as he drifted off after Ash.

* * *

 _" **There, see? All that worrying for naught. The whole town's quiet."**_

"Yeah," Ash said.

 ** _"Don't tell me you're disappointed."_**

"I was kind of hoping for _some_ disturbance at least—I need practice for being a Pokémon master!"

 ** _"And what are you going to practice with? You don't even have a Pokémon to your name!"_**

Ash shone his light on Darkrai. "And what are you, chopped liver?"

 ** _"Joy, he's picking up my vocal patterns. I'm not your Pokémon, dunce!"_**

"But if I ask nicely, will you fight that Rotom for me?"

 ** _"Good gracious, no."_**

"Why not?"

 ** _"I'm not fond of being electrocuted."_**

Ash gave that some thought as they continued up the hill towards the Professor's lab. "Hey," he noised suddenly. "If _I_ get electrocuted, do you think it'd give me awesome powers?"

 ** _"If you got electrocuted, you'd be lucky if it jumpstarted your one brain cell."_**

"Hey, that's not nice."

 ** _"Oh good, he picks up on it. And look: all quiet on the northern front."_**

The words had hardly left Darkrai's mouth when all the lights in the Professor's lab flickered.

"Ha! See? That Rotom's in there," Ash declared. "It probably can't resist all those electrical doodads the Professor's got."

 ** _"I'm going to kill that thing,"_** Darkrai muttered.

"Well, come on then!" Ash said, dodging to the nearest window. "Let's get started!"

* * *

Ratty, Delia's Raticate, blinked at the sudden flicker of lights.

 _Probably some Electric Pokémon letting off steam,_ he thought. It wasn't anything to worry about—yet.

Although he had to admit, he wasn't sure what he was going to do if it _did_ turn out to be something. He was ancient, by Raticate standards— _arthritis_ was what Oak called the stiffening in his joints, and his fur was going gray, matching the silver medal on his collar. He gave himself a few more years, to be honest—he was already trying to figure out where Delia would plant him.

His eyesight, however, wasn't failing, and so he noticed when the lights flickered again and then went out.

" _Woah—what just happened?"_ Delia's other Pokémon, Faraday the Farfetch'd yelped, apparently jolted awake by the flicker. At least it wasn't a seizure or something like that—maybe it was a Porygon doing these lights. He had heard about something like that occurring a while back on that box Delia stared at.

" _Some Pokémon having a lark,"_ Ratty told him. _"Go back to sleep._ "

Faraday was much younger than Ratty, and much more timid. Ratty had grown out of his timidness when he became a trainer's Pokémon—he had to be fearless in order to defend Delia. Faraday had been captured towards the end of the War, and therefore didn't have to develop a killer instinct. On occasion, it was just plain annoying, but Ratty did work to keep Faraday calm, and succeeded most days.

It wasn't working tonight. _"Ratty…I think I heard something moving."_

 _"You do realize there are other Pokémon here, right?"_

 _"No, I mean—aah! I see it! It just looked in the window!"_

Ratty looked to see a tattered shadow duck away from the window. He heard muted voices—burglars.

 _"Use Aerial Ace on that lock,"_ Ratty commanded.

 _"What? But won't the Professor be mad at us?"_

 _"He'll be even madder if we don't stop those intruders. Now do it."_

Faraday complied, and Ratty nudged the now-broken door open.

He grunted in pain as he connected with the floor—going up and down the stairs, and even getting on and off the couch, was really starting to pain him. He had been spending most of his days lazing in the sun rather than tackle the stairs—he comforted himself by knowing he was protecting the ground floor.

As he was right now.

 _"They're opening the window in the next room,"_ Faraday hissed in his ear as he alighted next to him. Faraday might be fearful, but he wasn't a coward—he'd help Ratty fight, and could hear where the Raticate's failing ears wouldn't.

 _"Come on then,"_ Ratty commanded, carefully maneuvering into the next room and peering in. Yes, there was the tattered shadow now, holding open a window as a smaller figure squeezed in. Ratty coiled to pounce as the larger figure squeezed through the window and the smaller figure turned on a flashlight—

He quickly arrested the motion when the light revealed the figure. _"Ash!?"_ Ratty squawked, recognizing his trainer's son.

 _"Ash?"_ Faraday asked. " _What's he doing here?"_

"Ratty! Faraday!" Ash greeted, oblivious. "Hi!"

Ratty crossed his front paws like he had seen Delia do and scowled at the boy. _"You are in big trouble, young man."_

Ratty, like all Pokémon, had entertained the notion that young humans could understand Pokémon. It was silly, true, but he had discovered that they most certainly understood the tone used. Ash looked properly reticent.

He prepared to launch into a tirade when Faraday reminded him that there was a fourth party in the room.

 _"Ratty! What is that thing!?"_

Ratty glanced behind Ash, saw the huge black _thing_ looming—

He launched himself at the thing, fangs at the ready, sinking them into the arm that rose to block. He was flung into a row of cabinets, but quickly readied himself for another dash—

Ash jumped in the way, prompting him to skid to a halt.

"No! Ratty! What are you doing? Darkrai's a friend!"

Ratty felt an eye twitch. _"What?"_ he asked flatly.

Ash, meanwhile, was looking at the black thing, which was cradling its injured arm. "Are you okay?"

 ** _"No,"_ ** it responded, in a voice that made some deep part of Ratty's core tremble—Faraday too, judging by the way he was now glued to his side. Ratty, meantime, was pleased to see that he had drawn blood.

"We'll get you fixed up. Are you okay, Ratty?"

Ratty decided not to dignify that with a response, instead opting for more pressing matters. _"What is that thing, and why is it with you?"_

 ** _"That 'thing' has a name, you bubonic beast,"_** the black thing spat.

Apparently it was also old, to make such a reference. And a Pokémon, Ratty noted now. _"Then out with it."_

 ** _"No—you didn't ask nicely."_**

"This is Darkrai," Ash said, apparently having caught the gist of the conversation. "Darkrai, this is Ratty and Faraday—they're my Mom's Pokémon."

 ** _"And I care because?"_**

 _"How do you know this…this thing?"_ Ratty asked, before reminding himself that Ash didn't speak Pokémon.

 ** _"Oh, yeah, cheers."_**

Ash, meanwhile, was rummaging through the Professor's drawers. "There's medical stuff here, right?" he asked.

" _Don't do that,"_ Faraday said as he ran to Ash's side, current fear suspended by the lack of action and the imminence of Ash hurting himself. " _You'll get a handful of something sharp and then where will you be?"_

"We'll look at Ratty too—could someone get the lights?"

 ** _"He's telling you not to stick your hands in there, moron,"_** the thing called Darkrai grumbled. **_"You'll cut yourself."_**

 _"Much as I appreciate you translating, don't talk to the boy,"_ Ratty snarled, positioning himself between Ash and Darkrai.

 ** _"Oh yes, I'm going to be scared of a little rat."_**

 _"This rat will hand your head to you if you don't shut up."_

"That's okay," Ash muttered, still checking drawers. "No one get the lights—I'll just bump around in the dark, quietly injuring—hey, here we go!"

Ratty half-turned his head to see Ash hold some sort of medical kit up—

Just as the lights flashed on.

"Gee, thanks," Ash muttered, rubbing his eyes.

 _"No problem, kid!"_

Something small and orange pinged around in the room, sending everyone into a tizzy. Faraday especially—Ash had to grab him to keep him from flying around in a panic.

"Darkrai, get it!" Ash ordered, struggling to keep Faraday still and his wings pinned.

 ** _"Who died and made you my trainer?"_** Darkrai asked, ducking as the thing zinged by again.

 _"I'll handle it,"_ Ratty said, inhaling. As the thing ricocheted in front of him again, he spat stars at it—Swift.

The stars went straight through with no effect.

 _"What?"_ Ratty muttered, blinking. " _But Swift never misses!"_

 ** _"It's a Ghost type,"_** Darkrai muttered. **_"Normal-type moves don't affect them."_**

 _"That's what you get, losers!"_ the orange thing yelled, before popping up right in front of Ratty. _"URAH!"_

Ratty blinked, nonplussed.

 _"That works both ways, you rookie,"_ Ratty said. _"Ghost moves don't affect Normal types."_

And in that split second that it took for the thing to process that statement, Ratty slammed his head into the thing—Zen Headbutt.

 _"Ow! No fair!"_ it yelped, trying to zip away.

Darkrai quickly blocked its path. **_"Oh, you think that's bad? Try this on for size."_**

Ratty wasn't sure what the move was, but it smelled of Ghost typing, and it sent the thing screaming into the closet.

"That ought to take care of it," Ash said after a few charged moments, finally letting Faraday go. The Farfetch'd ran over to Ratty again before returning to Ash—a glare from Ratty had reminded him that there was still a Pokémon not to be trusted in the room.

"How are you doing, Ratty?" Ash asked, kneeling next to him.

 _"Fine,"_ Ratty said flatly, stretching a limb experimentally. Nope—nothing new hurting.

Ash looked to Faraday, who nodded.

Apparently, Ash took that as a cue to go check on the black blot instead.

 _"Wonderful,"_ Ratty muttered, glaring at Faraday. _"Allow me to make things plain—we do not want Ash around that thing."_

 _"Sorry,"_ Faraday muttered, lowering his head.

Ratty looked back to see that Darkrai was actually allowing Ash to minister to its arm.

"I guess you're not as big and bad as you say you are," Ash said, grinning. "Losing to Ratty like that."

 ** _"I didn't lose,"_** Darkrai said pointedly. **_" Someone interrupted the battle before I could win."_**

 _"Right."_

 ** _"I'm sorry, but didn't you notice who gave the finishing blow in that last battle?"_**

Ratty sniffed, unimpressed. Now that Ash had cleaned the wound, he could see that the bite had been pretty clean—right up until it had flung him away, which resulted in a ragged edge. He supposed it had reacted before he could bite down harder—as it was, once Ash finished with the Potion and the bandages, it wouldn't even scar.

"There! That's done," Ash observed as he tied the knot on the bandage. Darkrai poked at it experimentally as Ash gathered up the detritus.

 _"Don't poke it,"_ Ratty scolded automatically.

 ** _"I'm sorry,"_** Darkrai said loftily. **_" You're telling me what to do?"_**

 _"I'm sorry,"_ Ratty said, imitating its tone. _"Do you want a bite wound that will scar?"_

"Guys, quit fighting," Ash said, dumping the garbage into the trash can and putting the kit away. "There! Just get you two back in bed, get _me_ back in bed, and Professor Oak will never know we've been here!"

The lights dimmed and strengthened again.

 _"I thought you beat that thing!"_ Faraday squawked.

 ** _"Well that's what you get for—"_** Darkrai began, but was cut off by the door to the closet being blown off its hinges. Ratty leapt in front of Ash and Faraday and employed Protect, deflecting the door. Darkrai sliced it in half when it ricocheted by.

 _"Surprise, suckers!"_

Ratty blinked. It was that orange thing again, this time looking like a fan.

 _"I've got a few more tricks up my sparks,"_ the thing declared. _"Prepare to hurt!"_

Ratty slowly exchanged glances with Darkrai. _"Truce?"_ he asked.

 ** _"Truce,"_** Darkrai agreed, before assuming a battle stance. **_"Let's unplug this freak."_**


	3. Ghost in the Machines

**Chapter 3, everyone—I was planning on having this and what is going to be the last chapter together, but rereading it, it works better as its own chapter. So have an extra week of Ash and Darkrai antics. Again, thanks to everyone who has invested in this story thus far. :D**

 **Cutesaralisa, thanks for the review! True—but fortunately, I don't think this Rotom has Cresselia on its mailing list, so Darkrai** ** _should_** **be safe from her. :)**

 **Thor94, thanks for the review! Thank you, I'm glad you like it—I thought for a while that those two would work well together, but there didn't seem to be any existing stories that didn't take place after the movie. Which, I suppose, is why we write. :) Mwahaha, yes—Rotom strike me as the gremlins of the Pokémon world, since they're ghosts that take over appliances. Sort of—the passing reference to being electrocuted generating new powers was the reference, although I suppose Trevor helped to inspire Ratty (although I've always loved Rattata). Ash can't fully understand Pokémon in this fic, with the exception of Darkrai—as Ratty said, tone is everything. :)**

 **Pokémon © 1996 Game Freak; Nintendo**

 ** _Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides_** **© 2011 Rob Marshall; Disney ("Wet. Wet again.")**

 **"** **Ding Dong, Avon Calling" © 1954 Avon Company**

 ** _Calvin and Hobbes_** **© 1985 Bill Watterson (Darkrai sort of references the line "If you can't win by reason, go for volume," which Calvin says in one strip)**

 ** _Skulduggery Pleasant_ series ****© 2007 Derek Landy (Darkrai quotes Skulduggery towards the end)**

Ash had to be honest—he was expecting Ratty and Darkrai to be tripping over each other in an attempt to one-up one another.

Not so—as soon as the Rotom had made itself known again, they had declared a truce and went after it—Ratty went low, Darkrai went high, and soon the ghostly lightbulb was forced to admit that it was outclassed.

Unfortunately, its idea of fixing that had involved Professor Oak's washer—they had gotten hosed quite quickly before recovering. Darkrai nailed it with a Sucker Punch while Ratty slipped in the puddles, only for Darkrai to get hit again with a close-range Hydro Pump, slamming him into the far wall.

 ** _"Wet,"_** Darkrai spat, pulling his now-soggy white hair out of his face. **_"Wet again."_**

Ash dodged into another room when the Rotom turned his way.

"Far! Farfetch'd!"

"I've got an idea!" Ash told Faraday, flapping along frantically after Ash.

He hoped it was a good one too, because a crash told him that the Rotom had abandoned the washer just like it had abandoned the fan, and he knew it was much faster without an appliance. He dodged into a room and slammed the door, hoping the Rotom couldn't go through walls.

Unfortunately, it could.

It zipped over his head and slammed into the refrigerator just as Ash realized he was in Professor Oak's kitchen.

"Aw, Muk," Ash muttered, using one of the curses he had picked up from Darkrai. Faraday jumped up and whacked him on the head with his leek for his trouble.

Ash flung open the door and ran back down the hall, narrowly dodging the Blizzard aimed at them, tried a different door—

Success!

This was where the professor kept his Pokéballs!

Ash grabbed one and turned—

Just as fire engulfed the door.

" _Far!"_ Faraday yelped as the Rotom forced the door open. It had taken over Professor Oak's toaster oven, apparently.

"Uh, uh," Ash noised, panicking as he glanced around—there wasn't any way out of the room!

Except for the window.

"Faraday! Break that window!" Ash commanded, pointing.

"Far! Farfetch'd!" Faraday squawked, spreading his wings in front of Ash and staying resolutely between him and the Rotom. Of course—Rotom might attack Ash if he didn't.

But it was warming up an attack anyway, so the whole point might be rendered moot.

And then something big and black loomed behind it.

 ** _"Ding-dong—Avon calling."_**

And then Darkrai slammed a fist into the Rotom's head.

* * *

Okay, hearing the metal crunch beneath his Sucker Punch had been satisfying.

Unfortunately, it simply signaled the fact that the Rotom had dodged out of the appliance again.

 _"You can't defeat me!"_ it crowed, zinging around again. _"I'm made of electricity!"_

 ** _"I'm sorry, what did you say?"_** Darkrai asked politely—if you can't win by straight force, go for snark. **_"You're made of stupidity?"_**

 _"No, no,"_ the Raticate said from its perch on Darkrai's back—it was better than waiting for it to hobble after him. _"He said he wanted to be fricasseed."_

Not that good, but Darkrai's Taunt had done the trick—the Rotom paused, obviously seething, and got a face-full of Ominous Wind for its trouble.

 _"Daa! I'll show you!"_ the Rotom spat, before zipping out the open window.

Open window?

 ** _"Didn't there use to be a kid in here?"_** Darkrai asked, looking around—no Ash.

 _"Oh no,"_ the Raticate moaned, prompting Darkrai to glance out the window. There was Ash, running across the lawn.

And there was the Rotom, the dull roar of a motor alerting them to the fact that it had found another machine and was going to use it to mow Ash down.

 _"Get out there!"_ the Raticate ordered. _"Now! NOW!"_

Darkrai was already halfway across the lawn, and slammed into the Rotom before it could reach its target. The Raticate leaped off of him and landed next to the Rotom, sinking its teeth into a tire.

 _"OW! No fair!"_ the Rotom screamed, zipping out of the mower and angling towards the lab.

Darkrai intercepted. **_"Oh no you don't—no more gadgets, no more tricks: just one good old-fashioned beat-down."_**

And with that, he used Knock-Off, sending it slamming into the ground, where the Raticate followed up with Assurance, sending it further into the ground. Darkrai dropped straight down, slamming it further down with Poison Jab.

When he pulled his fist back, though, something small and round dropped into the Rotom-shaped hole, sucking it in with a flash of red light.

Darkrai turned to glare at Ash, who was watching the thrown Pokéball attentively.

 ** _"And what was that for?"_** he spat.

Ash waited until the ball _ping_ ed before answering. "It's captured. It's in a Pokéball. It's not a problem anymore, right?"

 ** _"Oh, I don't know—property damage, attempted murder, those things ring a bell?"_**

The Raticate nodded, surprisingly.

Ash crossed over and picked the ball up out of the hole. "Yeah, but it's in a Pokéball now—"

 ** _"That orb you've got in your hand doesn't mean a thing."_**

 _"Yes it does,"_ Ash stressed, looking at him. "This thing isn't nice, but it isn't worth having its death on your hands."

 _One more wouldn't hurt._

Darkrai glared, more at the tiny mental voice than Ash, then _hmph_ ed and turned away.

" ** _You're not keeping it,"_** he ordered as he floated off.

"Of course not," Ash said. "I'll put it in Professor Oak's office—then Faraday and Ratty can go back and it'll be like nothing ever happened."

 _"Does he really think the Professor won't notice all the damage?"_ Darkrai heard the bird ask.

 _"Humans are remarkably dense that way,"_ the rat said.

"I bet Professor Oak might actually be happy to have this," Ash mused, looking into the transparent top of the Pokéball as he headed towards the lab. "After all, it isn't a common Pokémon, right?"

 ** _"And how are you going to alert him to the fact that it's his now?"_** Darkrai asked.

"I'll leave a note."

 ** _"He'd recognize your handwriting."_**

"And?"

Darkrai sighed. **_"Hang on—I'll help you forge the note."_**

"You can write?"

 ** _"Do you want my help or not?"_**

"All right, all right…."

Darkrai rolled his eyes and shook his head. Idiot kid.

 ** _"Next time I want to watch a movie, I'm going to a drive-in and leaving you home,"_** Darkrai informed Ash as he drifted after him.

"You'd miss me."

 _ **"Like an oblivious man misses the point."**_

"Did you just insult me?"

 _ **"See? Right there."**_

 _"Play nice, children,"_ the Raticate sighed.

That ship had sailed long ago, Darkrai figured.

But he might as well.


	4. Tone Is Everything

**Chapter 4, everyone, in which we have the dénouement and the results of the unfortunate demise of the TV. Thanks to everyone who faved and followed this story—your support tells me that I ought to go and post the bigger story this is related to starting in October. :)**

 **Cutesaralisa, thanks for the review! True—and yes: "This wasn't bad enough that other Pokémon saw it too—I'll never be able to show my face at the Legend Convention again."**

 **Reader Of Fate, thanks for the review! Well, good news: I'll be granting that wish starting in October (gotta finish up some of my other stories first ;) ). Glad you've enjoyed it! :D**

 **Thor94, thanks for the review! Thank you—and yes indeed. One more, and Darkrai requests that that comment not leave the room (it's true, but he'll deny it all day every day).**

 **Ralmon, thanks for the review! Glad you liked the antics and found it fun—may I ask for elaboration on the characters? I'd like to improve for next time. :)**

 **Pokémon © 1996 Game Freak; Nintendo (and happy 20** **th** **anniversary to them, too)**

 _ **Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl**_ **© 2003 Gore Verbinski (the "inescapably" comment Darkrai makes)**

As expected, Ash's mom blew a gasket upon coming home and discovering the wrecked television. Ash tried explaining, but as Rotom weren't native to Kanto, Delia didn't believe him.

Therefore, Ash was delegated to weeding the garden, Faraday and Ratty supervising in case one of the Bellsprout got irritated with him.

"I can't believe it," Ash muttered, pulling a weed. "Grounded for _life._ How am I supposed to become a Pokémon master if I can't even leave the house?"

Ratty was pretty certain that Delia had only been employing hyperbole—he didn't _think_ she'd really ground Ash for life, although the jury was still out on whether or not he deserved it.

Ratty scowled at that—had his senses really been failing so badly that he didn't notice a strange Pokémon lurking about? And worse, that Ash had befriended this monster?

He could understand it, of course—Ash was the sort of human that tended to latch onto anyone that gave him any sort of positive attention. And he certainly wasn't getting it outside of home—the other human children seemed to be following that boy Gary's lead and either ignoring Ash altogether or being openly hostile to him. It wouldn't last forever, he was sure—most likely they'd grow out of it sooner or later. But it wasn't the sort of thing Ash needed in his formative years.

Ratty's scowl deepened—ugh, from that description that monster Darkrai might actually be a _good_ thing. But then again, its motives could be less than pure. Pokémon generally were nice to human children out of instinct—that Rotom last night had been an anomaly.

Faraday looked off to the distance, as did Ash and several Bellsprout. Ratty barely detected the _boom_.

" _I think the Professor found the Rotom,"_ Faraday said.

Ratty sniffed and turned his attention to the Bellsprout. It had felt good to battle again, but it only served as a reminder that he wasn't young anymore—he was remarkably stiff today, and his muscles were letting him know they did not like the exertion of last night. He wouldn't be able to keep this up much longer.

Which reminded him….

 _"Hey, you. Bellsprout,"_ Ratty said, prompting the gardenful to look over at him. _"What do you think about a nice warm pot in the window year-round?"_

Faraday shared the Bellsprouts' odd looks. Most of them were dismissive—understandable. They didn't want to give up their autonomy, even if it _did_ mean security and comfort.

 _"I'd like that."_

Ratty moved so he could see who the tiny voice belonged to. The Bellsprout looked at the one who had spoke—it was smaller than the others, not much to look at…but then again, he had been the same way before he met Delia.

 _"It doesn't come without responsibility,"_ Ratty told it. _"You have to be ready to defend the house and everyone in it with your life—sometimes against beasts that are bigger than you and infinitely more dangerous. You have to trust your life to someone else, someone who may at times ask you to do things that look like suicide. They'll trust you to do your very best, and you'll have to trust them to do theirs. Do you think you can manage?"_

The Bellsprout looked slightly terrified, but nodded just the same.

 _"All right then,"_ Ratty said, looking to Faraday. _"Faraday, go get one of Delia's Pokéballs—an empty one, if you please."_

 _"Uh,"_ Faraday said. _"Shouldn't Delia be the one who—"_

 _"Faraday."_

 _"All right,"_ Faraday muttered, running up the short steps and into the house.

"What are you guys talking about?" Ash asked.

 _"Nothing you need to worry about,"_ Ratty told him—they understand tone, he reminded himself. _"Get back to weeding."_

Ash did so, and had gotten a good chunk done when Faraday returned with the Pokéball.

Ratty took the device, trotted through the garden, and held it out, button facing the small Bellsprout. It hesitated slightly before pressing its head against the button, thus activating the capture mechanism. It disappeared in a flash of red light; the ball rocked, and then pinged. Capture complete.

"Cool," Ash noised. "We've got a Bellsprout."

 _"Take good care of her,"_ one of the Bellsprout told Ratty.

 _"Don't worry, we will,"_ Ratty said, walking back through the garden and handing the Pokéball over to Faraday. _"Take her to Delia and introduce them, then come back."_

 _"Okay,"_ Faraday said, accepting the Pokéball and running back into the house. Satisfied, Ratty crossed over to Ash and sat down, facing a patch of nearby forest where he had seen something big and black lurking.

When Faraday returned, Ratty told him to keep an eye on Ash, and then began the laborious walk over to the woods. A small distance and slight slope—his muscles were not happy.

 _"And what are you doing here?"_ Ratty asked when he was almost to the scrub brush.

 ** _"Oh, cheers,"_** the Darkrai sneered. **_"What, here to try and take another bite out of me?"_**

 _"Don't think I won't,"_ Ratty said, entering the cover hiding the Darkrai from human eyes. He was loathe to do so, but he sat down anyway to relieve his tired limbs. _"Why are you here?"_

 ** _"I don't have to answer to you."_**

 _"No, you don't,"_ Ratty agreed. _"But I will talk, and I expect you to listen._

 _"That boy is the offspring of my trainer,"_ Ratty said carefully, making sure his words were sinking in. _"As far as I'm concerned, he may as well be my own kit. I will protect him with my own life._

 _"But I'm not getting any younger, and I'd feel better if I knew he was taken care of."_

He watched the Darkrai's reaction carefully before continuing. _"You're no one's Pokémon. I can understand that. But at the same time, so long as you hang around him, I expect you to protect him. Are we clear?"_

 ** _"And why should I do that?"_** the Darkrai shot.

 _"Yes, why should you?"_ The Darkrai's answer had confirmed his suspicion. _"You struck me as a Pokémon who isn't concerned with the safety of humans. Either you ignored them in their distress, or you took an active part and attacked them."_ It wasn't an official move, but Ratty's glare arrested any argument just the same. _"And yet here you are hanging around a youngling, going so far as to let him believe you're his friend."_ He held up a claw to stop the protest. _"I don't care about your past—I care about your present. You take care of him for as long as you stay around him. And—heaven help me—I request that you do. He needs friends. Friends that speak human."_

The Darkrai looked away. Ratty was pleased to see that he had made him uncomfortable.

 _"Look at me,"_ Ratty commanded. When he did so: " _I want you to take care of Ash, watch over him. If you fail, mark my words, I will haunt you. Are we clear?"_

 ** _"Inescapably,"_** the Darkrai grumbled. **_"I'd hate to have a pesky ghost-rat bothering me."_**

 _"Ah, but don't you recall the rumors?"_ Ratty returned. _"I'd come back as a Ghost-type. Maybe a Rotom—they seem to be your favorite."_

He chuckled at the thunderous expression on the other Pokémon's face. _"Good bye, Darkrai,"_ Ratty said, laboriously getting to his feet. Ow. _"I'm sure you and Ash will be getting into trouble again very soon—just make sure he gets out of it."_

 ** _"And what if I don't want to?"_ ** Darkrai asked, still being difficult.

 _"Then leave."_

He expected the expression. _"It's good for you to be here,"_ Ratty said. _"Everyone needs someplace to belong. And I think you like the Pokémon you are when you're around Ash. Just don't mess it up."_

With that, he began the laborious trek back to the garden. Upon arrival, it was to find that Ash was done and resting a moment.

" _Ahem,"_ Ratty coughed, then lifted his front paws when Ash looked at him. " _I see no need to spend half the day getting up the steps when you can carry me."_

"Aw, Ratty, but you're _heavy_ ," Ash grumbled, but still picked him up.

 _"Not as much as I used to be,"_ Ratty sighed; the majority of his weight was in his muscles, which had atrophied with age.

Faraday flew up to land on Ash's head, directing him with his leek. " _All right! Let's see what other chores Delia has for you!"_

Ash sighed, prompting Ratty to paw at his face. "Right, sorry," Ash said, heading for the house. As he turned, Ratty spotted the Darkrai, still lurking about—

And now watching with curiosity, and another expression Ratty couldn't quite decipher.

Ratty smiled, then patted Ash again.

 _"You two will go far, kid,"_ he said, prompting Ash to smile down at him.

Yes, he reflected—tone was everything.


End file.
